1. I Want To Be Wrapped In Your Arms2. Christmas Wish3. Boogie Woogie Santa4. Christmas In Your Arms5. I'll Be Home For Christmas6. Please Come Home For Christmas7. This Gift8. Rudolph The Red Nose Reindeer9. The Meaning Of Christmas10. Jingle Bell Rock11. Silent Night12. This Is What We Say To You

The Band Of Oz are another long running and extremely popular North Carolina Beach Music band. The Band Of Oz got its start around 1967 as a part-time party band. It was nearly a decade, and several personnel changes, later, when the group decided to try to make something more permanent of it. They toured extensively for a few years, then waxed their first single, "Shaggin'," in 1978. As a young music director at a Carolina radio station, I vividly remember adding the group's next single to our rotation. "Star Of My Life", largely through a great many requests from our listeners, rose steadily up our charts. The rest, as they say... Big John Thompson joined the group in 1980, giving the Band of Oz a bit more of a public face and personality than it had previously enjoyed. When Big John chose to get off the road, he was replaced by Jerry West. Through the years, The Band Of Oz has been less of a recording band, though they've scored a few huge regional hits, and more of a performing band. They still perform between 200 and 300 shows a year as they have for the past 30 years.

Like the Coastline Band CD immediately below, this KHP Christmas compilation features previously issued material from The Band Of Oz, as well as 3 new recordings. KHP, by the way, is the label of Keith Houston, the only original member of Band Of Oz still with them. Three of the songs, here, date back to (roughly) 1993, taken from an album put together by another member of the Band Of Oz, David Hicks; "Boogie Woogie Santa Claus", "Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer", and "Jingle Bell Rock" all come from "All-Star Christmas". "Silent Night" first appeared on "Southern Soul Christmas, Vol. 1" in 2003. "This Is What We Say To You", featuring the band at their soulful best, was included on "Southern Soul Christmas, Vol. 2". "Wrapped In Your Arms" is taken from the second volume of "Ocean Drive Christmas" (2007), while "This Gift" appeared on the third in 2008. And, from the 2009 KHP compilation "Soul For The Season", we have "The Meaning Of Christmas". That leaves 4 songs I can't account for, with the band's own liner notes saying there are only 3 newly recorded. So I'm not sure which way to go with this one. Perhaps "Please Come Home For Christmas" featuring John Thompson was recorded for "All-Star Christmas" but bumped because The Embers had their own version on that set. Or perhaps the band is counting "Christmas Wish" as previously recorded; the song appeared on "Ocean Drive Christmas" as by the Young Guns featuring band members Scott Fine and Tim Morris and this version sounds like they swapped in Jerry West's vocals for John Thompson Jr.'s. Or perhaps they had intended to include 1993's "Go Power At Christmas Time" but decided against it, leaving 4 new tracks. But it does appear, at least, that "I'll Be Home For Christmas" and "Christmas In Your Arms" are newly recorded. I'll leave which or both of the other two tracks is actually new to someone who knows better than I do.

"Christmas Present, Christmas Past" is an excellent collection of Beach Christmas music featuring one of it's most popular practitioners, The Band Of Oz. True to it's title, the album features selections from 1993 to present, including an array of the group's most legendary vocalists. And, musically, the styles range from classic R&B to Motown to Boy Band to Adult Contemporary. The price listed at Southern Soul includes postage.

Leave a Reply.

PREviews

I don't know about you, but I want to see that cover art and I want to see that track list before I make my Christmas music purchasing decisions. The earlier the better. That's what we try to do for you here. We'll also try to give you a little background on the artist(s), in case they're new to you.